Safeguarding Adults Policy

Safeguarding Adults Policy

CONTACTS:

POLICE EMERGENCY NUMBER: 999

POLICE NON-EMERGENCY NUMBER: 101

DESIGNATED SAFEGUARDING ADULTS LEADS: Judy Taylor/Caring Communities Lead 07768 961204 or judyelias.taylor@gmail.com

DEPUTY SAFEGUARDING: Moira Murray moira1murray@btinternet.com and Vicky Hart vnhart@gmail.com

MRJ DESIGNATED SAFEGUARDING LEAD: Sharon Daniels 020 8349 5659

Policy Statement

Bromley Reform Synagogue (BRS) believes everyone has the right to live free from abuse or neglect, regardless of age, ability or disability, sex, race, religion and belief, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, marital or gender status.

BRS is committed to maintaining a safe and positive environment and an open, listening culture where people are able to share concerns without fear of retribution.

BRS acknowledges that safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility and is committed to prevent abuse and neglect through safeguarding the welfare of all adults involved.

BRS recognises that there is a legal framework within which we, as a religious community, need to work to safeguard adults who have need for care and support or for protecting those who are unable to take action to protect themselves and will act in accordance with the relevant safeguarding legislation and with local statutory safeguarding procedures.

Actions taken by BRS will be consistent with the principles of adult safeguarding ensuring that any action taken is prompt, proportionate and that it includes and respects the voices of the adults concerned.

Scope

This safeguarding adult policy and associated procedures apply to all individuals involved in Bromley Reform Synagogue including Board members, staff, volunteers, members and visitors and to all concerns about the safety of adults whilst involved with our organisation in any capacity.

Definitions

The Safeguarding Adults legislation creates specific responsibilities on Local Authorities, Health, and the Police to provide additional protection from abuse and neglect to Adults at Risk. For all board members, there are additional responsibilities which include ensuring a safe culture for all members, visitors, volunteers, and staff.

An Adult at risk is:

An individual aged 18 years and over who:

(a) has needs for care and support (whether or not the local authority is meeting any of those needs) AND;

(b) is experiencing, or at risk of, abuse or neglect, AND;

(c) as a result of those care and support needs is unable to protect themselves from either the risk of, or the experience of abuse or neglect.

Abuse can link to the mistreatment of an adult at risk by someone with whom they have a relationship, such as a family member, friend, carer (either formal or informal), or may be by a stranger. It may also encompass self-neglect.

(Care Act 2014)

The Care Act (2014) identifies different kinds of abuse which are:

Physical abuse
Domestic violence or abuse
Sexual abuse
Psychological or emotional abuse
Financial or material abuse
Modern slavery
Discriminatory abuse
Organisational or institutional abuse
Neglect or acts of omission
Self-neglect

(see appendix 1)

When allegations of historical abuse are made the same procedure detailed below should also be followed.

All board members, volunteers and staff members undertake safeguarding training that is regularly updated to ensure that they are aware of their responsibilities.

Procedures

BRS will promote an environment where all vulnerable adults are safe from abuse and feel valued.

All board members, volunteers and staff will be provided with clear guidelines and procedures to follow including action to take should they be concerned about a vulnerable adult’s welfare.

Concerns in relation to safeguarding, may come through disclosure directly from the person at risk of abuse, from a third party or from other factors including changes in behaviour and observations which have led to these concerns. Adults are assumed to have the mental capacity to make their decisions about further action regarding referral processes.

There are, however, some circumstances by which staff, volunteers and the DSL have a responsibility to report a concern even if consent is not given by the person involved. This includes situations where:

A crime is suspected.
Allegations of abuse involve members of staff or volunteers from BRS.
There is a significant risk of harm to the individual or to others.
The person is a tenant, resident or patient within an institution or care setting where the alleged abuse may involve other people at risk

If a board member, volunteer, or member of staff is concerned about the immediate safety of a vulnerable adult, they should call the emergency services immediately (police/ambulance as relevant). The designated safeguarding lead should always be informed. The designated safeguarding lead should have been checked by DBS service.

If the adult at risk of harm is not in immediate danger, the person to whom the report is made should contact the designated safeguarding lead as soon as possible.

Disclosure of Abuse

Allow the vulnerable person at risk to discuss and talk about their concerns but do not put them under any pressure to do so.

Responding to the disclosure

Remain calm.
Ask the person what happened and listen without interruption.
Avoid asking questions, particularly challenging questions or leading questions.
Provide reassurance to the person that they have done the right thing in disclosing
Explain what your next steps will be.
Do not promise that information will be confidential as there is a duty to share information with DSL.
Report to the DSL.

Recording a disclosure

Record immediately any concerns raised and action taken as a result.

What did they say/do?
What was said in response?
Actions taken.
Anyone else who was around at the time.
What had been happening at the time the disclosure was made/concern was raised.
This record should be signed and dated and saved securely.

Referrals

The DSL is responsible for referring to the local authority in which the alleged abuse has taken place
However, anyone is able to make a referral to the local authority if the DSL is not available.
Local authority will make decisions about further actions.
The DSL should inform the relevant person about the referral.

Safeguarding Adults and Mental Capacity

All adults are assumed to have the mental capacity to make decisions of their own about their own wellbeing including safeguarding concerns.
If a person raising concerns believes that the potential adult at risk of harm does not have the capacity to decide about their wellbeing or safety, they should refer to the designated safeguarding lead.

Role of the Designated Safeguarding Lead

The designated safeguarding lead with responsibility for adult safeguarding procedures should ensure that they have sufficient training and input to carry out their role.
The designated safeguarding lead is responsible to the Trustee Board and will liaise with the Lead Trustee responsible for safeguarding to report any concerns to the Board and ensure the Board have oversight of any concerns arising.
They take the lead on liaising with the relevant local authorities when necessary and making referrals when there is a concern.
If there is a concern about the role of the designated safeguarding lead, there will be an additional lead member of the board to whom concerns can be raised. It would be their role to liaise with MRJ to follow up any concerns raised.

Reporting the concern to the local social services team

If the DSL makes a referral to the local authority, they must ensure that they have documented this on the relevant local authority paperwork
If the situation is urgent, they should contact the local authority safeguarding team by telephone
Once the concern has been raised to the local authority, it will be their responsibility to investigate the concern.

Recruitment

Safer practice in recruitment should ensure that suitable people are employed who work towards the values and principles of the organisation
The recruitment process requires the checking of references prior to the offer of employment
A DBS should be requested if necessary for the role which is being carried out.

Training

All board members, staff and volunteers should receive safeguarding training as relevant to their role and have access to the safeguarding policy and procedures.
This training should be regularly updated according to the needs as relevant to their role.

APPENDIX 1

Types and Indicators of abuse relating to vulnerable adults (SCIE 2020)
PHYSICAL ABUSE
- Physical abuse is an act of force or violence that causes bodily harm to someone else, typically in the form of physical discomfort, impairment, injury, or pain. A person does not have to show signs of injury or bruises to have experienced physical abuse
- Some signs of physical abuse (not exhaustive)
  - Bruising including black eyes
  - Burns
  - Cuts
  - Restraint or grip markings
  - Unusual patterns of injuries
  - Repeated trips to A&E
  - Anxiety including panic attacks or post-traumatic stress disorder
  - Depression
  - Fearfulness

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE OR ABUSE
- Any incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive, threatening behaviour, violence, or abuse between those aged 16 or over who are, or have been, intimate partners or family members regardless of gender, age or sexuality. Family members, including children, parents and siblings are included. This abuse can encompass but is not limited to psychological, sexual, physical, and financial abuse.
- Some signs of domestic abuse
  - As well as signs of physical, emotional, sexual and financial abuse this can also include coercive control

SEXUAL ABUSE
- Sexual abuse is any type of non-consensual sexual activity or contact. It can take the form of any sexual act or contact that makes someone feel uncomfortable, afraid, or intimidated. It also includes exploitation in exchange for attention, affection, material goods including money and may be part of a seemingly consensual relationship.
- Some signs of sexual abuse (not exhaustive)
  - Unexpected changes in behaviour
  - Sudden withdrawal from social activities
  - Bruising, injury
  - Cutting off ties with friends and family

PSYCHOLOGICAL OR EMOTIONAL ABUSE
- Psychological abuse (sometimes referred to as emotional abuse) may take the form of intimidation, coercion, threats, harassment, humiliation, bullying or shouting. It also could be enforced isolation (for example, preventing someone from accessing a service or seeing friends), failure to respect privacy or online bullying
- Some signs of psychological abuse
  - Low self-esteem
  - Signs of distress like tearfulness, anger
  - Withdrawal or changes in mood
  - Different behaviours when a particular person is present
  - Insomnia

FINANCIAL OR MATERIAL ABUSE
- Financial abuse includes theft (of money or possessions), fraud, scams or coercion of somebody in relation to the financial affairs or arrangements, including in connection with loans, wills, property, inheritance or financial transactions. It could be misuse of a legal authority over someone’s finances (such as Lasting Power of Attorney) or the misappropriation of benefits.
- Some signs of financial abuse
  - Unexplained shortages of money
  - Unexplained or unusual banking activities
  - Frequent cold callers on the phone
  - Increasing debts which are not explainable

MODERN SLAVERY
- Modern slavery is the result of human trafficking. It involves the movement of people through force, fraud or coercion/deception with the aim of exploiting them.
- Trafficked people may not be immediately identifiable but have little choice in what happens to them and often suffer from abuse. They become commodities owned by traffickers, used for profit.
- Some signs of modern slavery
  - Appears malnourished or unkempt
  - Seems withdrawn
  - Has few or no personal possessions
  - Lacks identification documents
  - Lives in poor conditions

DISCRIMINATORY ABUSE
- Discriminatory abuse is unequal or unfair treatment of someone on the basis of a ‘protected characteristic’ (Equality Act 2010). These are age, disability, gender/gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy/maternity, race, religion, or belief. It may manifest as another form of abuse, such as harassment and bullying. It could be direct such as deliberately treating someone less favourably or indirect, where rules are in place for everyone, but put some people at an unfair disadvantage. It may be that where someone experiences discriminatory abuse manifesting as antisemitism, they may be more likely to seek staff at BRS for support.
- Some signs of discriminatory abuse
  - Support offered to one person might be different/worse, with no clear rationale
  - A person may raise complaints about a service or interaction.

ORGANISATIONAL OR INSTITUTIONAL ABUSE
- Organisational abuse occurs in a setting such as a hospital, care home or care agency where the organisation may fail to provide a standard of care and treatment which meets the needs of recipients, and this is at the point where they cause harm to a person or people. Examples might be not providing sufficient staff which results in poor quality care or a lacking in dignity or respect. This often affects a number of people within the organisation.
- Some signs of organisational abuse
  - Inflexible routines
  - Lack of consideration of dietary requirements
  - Inappropriate language
  - Lack of physical care (e.g., looking unkempt)
  - Withholding care or medication

NEGLECT OR ACTS OF OMISSION
- Neglect is when a person’s needs are not met. This can include not providing care in a way the person likes, ignoring their likes and dislikes. It may be the person is not getting care and support including having food at a time they want and having medication regularly if they require support with this. Neglect can be intentional or unintentional as it may be caused by informal carers feeling overwhelmed or lacking understanding of the needs of the person they are caring for. Neglect often affects one person whereas organisational abuse, which may look similar, is when more than one person is affected.
- Signs of neglect
  - Unkempt appearance
  - Lack of consideration shown towards person

SELF-NEGLECT
- There is no one definition of self-neglect. It covers a wide range of behaviours including a person neglecting their own health or environment (hoarding behaviour).

There are many reasons people might neglect themselves including as a result of mental health issues including dementia or depression, substance misuse or could be personal choice. Often it is triggered by trauma or significant events such as a bereavement of a close family member or friend.

Signs of self-neglect
- Lack of self-care including personal hygiene
- Lack of care for the environment they live in
- Refusal of any assistance to manage these issues.

Key contact details for local authorities

BROMLEY

Working hours: 020 8461 7777

Out of hours: 0300 303 8671

Referral website (not for emergencies)

GREENWICH

Working hours: 020 8921 2304

Out of hours: 020 8854 8888

Referral email (not for emergencies) aops.contact.officers@royalgreenwich.gov.uk

CROYDON

Working hours advice: 020 8726 6500

Out of hours – call police if urgent, otherwise complete referral (link below) and will be picked up during working hours.

Non-urgent referral (website)

BEXLEY

Working hours: 020 8303 7777 (ask for ‘screeners’)

Referral email (not for emergencies) screeners@bexley.gov.uk

KENT COUNTY COUNCIL

Working hours: 03000 416161 or online form

Our of hours: 03000 41 91 91

Also can email social.services@kent.gov.uk (non emergencies)

LEWISHAM

Working hours: 020 8314 7777

Email gateway@lewisham.gov.uk (non-emergencies)

References and further information

Learning about Safeguarding

Resources for support